(EDITOR’S NOTE: I am a huge, huge fan of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. When I received an email on the BBC 100 Women 2023 List and saw that the former First Lady was among those on the list, I had to share it with readers of my online publication, BAHAMAS CHRONICLE, which has a huge following among the Bahamian diaspora across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom as well as in The Bahamas and the wider Caribbean. – Oswald T. Brown, Editor of Bahamas Chronicle)
LONDON, England, November 21, 2023 — The BBC has revealed its list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world for 2023. Among them are attorney and former US First Lady Michelle Obama, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, Ballon d’Or-winning footballer Aitana Bonmatí, AI expert Timnit Gebru, feminist icon Gloria Steinem, Hollywood star America Ferrera and beauty mogul Huda Kattan.
In a year where extreme heat, wildfires, floods and other natural disasters have been dominating headlines, the list also highlights women who have been working to help their communities tackle climate change and take action to adjust to its impacts.
The list includes 28 Climate Pioneers, named ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP28.
MICHELLE OBAMA, UNITED STATES
Attorney, author and campaigner
Former First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama is the founder of the Girls Opportunity Alliance, which supports global grassroots organisations working to ensure girls get the education they deserve.
This builds on Let Girls Learn, an initiative Obama launched as first lady which employed a whole-of-government approach to help adolescent girls around the world access quality education.
As first lady, she championed three other major initiatives: Let’s Move! sought to help parents raise healthier kids; Joining Forces supported US service personnel, veterans, and their families; and Reach Higher – which she still works on today – encourages young people to pursue higher education.
WHAT IS 100 WOMEN?
BBC 100 Women names 100 influential and inspiring women around the world every year. We create documentaries, features and interviews about their lives – stories that put women at the centre and are published and broadcast on all BBC platforms.
HOW WERE THE 100 WOMEN CHOSEN?
The BBC 100 Women team drew up a shortlist based on names they gathered through research and those suggested by the BBC’s network of World Service Languages teams, as well as BBC Media Action.
We were looking for candidates who had made headlines or influenced important stories over the past 12 months, as well as those who have inspiring stories to tell, or have achieved something significant or influenced their societies in ways that wouldn’t necessarily make the news.
A pool of names was also assessed against this year’s theme – climate change and its disproportionate impact on women and girls around the world, from which a group of 28 Climate Pioneers and other environmental leaders were selected.
We represented voices from across the political spectrum and from all areas of society, explored names around topics that split opinion, and nominated women who have created their own change.
The list was also measured for regional representation and due impartiality before the final names were chosen. All women have given their consent to be on the list.
See the full list and brief biographies of the BBC 100 Women 2023 at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-02d9060e-15dc-426c-bfe0-86a6437e5234?at_campaign_type=owned&at_medium=emails&at_objective=awareness&at_ptr_type=email&at_ptr_name=salesforce&at_campaign=newsbriefing&at_email_send_date=20231121&at_send_id=4007629&at_link_title=https%3a%2f%2fwww.bbc.co.uk%2fnews%2fresources%2fidt-02d9060e-15dc-426c-bfe0-86a6437e5234&at_bbc_team=crm
